Storyteller
by Sora Moto
Summary: What does it mean to grow up? This is a question Sophie Bennett very much wants the answer to, if only so she can avoid it.
1. Chapter 1

**What does it mean to grow up? Is growing up reaching milestones in one's life? Turning 13, 15, 16 or 18? Losing that first baby tooth or the last one? At what point do we stop believing everything our parents tell us to doubt the stories we were told? I suppose if one is to go by these definitions of growing up then the belief in the Guardians should happen long before becoming a teen. After all teenagers don't believe in things like the Tooth Fairy, the Sandman, Santa Claus, or the Easter Bunny. But what if they were real and it was only in believing in them that you could see them? Or maybe it is growing up that truly causes one to lose the ability to see these protectors. Or maybe a combination of these factors.  
Sophie Bennett was what one would call a late bloomer. She was just entering into high school and had yet to lose all her baby teeth. On top of that she hadn't fully embraced Puberty like many of her peers, maintaining a pixie like appearance. And perhaps it was these factors that led her to maintain a belief in childhood characters that everyone else brushed off as fictional. Now admittedly it may have something to do with a dreamlike experience when she was much younger, maybe 3 or 4 she wasn't exactly sure. She knew had been around Easter and she had gone to her brother's room after a nightmare to find the Easter Bunny, Santa clause and the Tooth Fairy knocked out in her brother's room and from there she somehow ended up in an Easter themed paradise. She wasn't sure after that what exactly happened and she woke up in her own bed. She honestly tried to brush it off as a wonderful dream when she got older, but every now and then she would catch a glimpse of one of those childhood protectors and could never find it in herself to completely dismiss them as figments.  
Now here she was starting high school and hoping more than ever for an early visit from Jack Frost, because she clearly remembered her brother never shutting up about the winter sprite until he 'grew up' and lost his last baby tooth. He had been in sixth grade, somewhat late to still be losing teeth but not nearly as late as Sophie herself. When that had happened he seemed to stop believing in his best friend, someone he was so sure existed, but she supposed years of not seeing him finally did away with his belief. It was seeing this play out that led to Sophie being glad she still had several of her baby teeth left to her. Sophie had vowed long ago to never stop believing, even if she couldn't see them anymore because she had 'grown up' as all children must someday do. For it is an inevitability that children grow up, no matter how much they wish otherwise. Though thinking on it if all those other fictional characters are real, what about Peter Pan? If he was real maybe she could dodge the inevitable and go live with the Easter Bunny. That actually sounded like a good plan to her, too bad actually making it happen was the trick.  
Settling into a seat in the common area of the school, Sophie pulls out a notebook from her bag and a pencil. This was a habit that Sophie had developed in middle school. Being the only 'believer' in her age bracket left her with a lot of free social time before school and since her mother always made her finish her homework at home before dinner, well she had taken to drawing and writing. Often her stories were about the Easter Bunny and his friends, the other Guardians. She would weave fantastic tales about them and include drawings and sketches to go with them, much like a children's book. Letting herself be caught up in her work she doesn't notice a boy, one a few years older than her, heading over to her. At least not until he sits beside her and begins talking to her.  
"Hey! You must be one of the freshman that's starting today, right?"  
Sophie pauses in her drawing of the Tooth Fairy before looking up and answering. "Yeah, I am. I'm Sophie." She holds out her hand to the boy and he smiles back at her.  
"I'm Nick. So what are you working on?"  
"Oh, this." She looks a bit sheepish before looking down at her sketch and the few sentences beside it. "Just a story I was working on."  
"Really? It looks pretty interesting. Is it a children's story? I mean you've got pictures drawn for it."  
"Well, yeah, but anyone could still read it."  
"Hey, you should come by the library after school. My club meets there most days and we were planning to meet today to work on recruiting new members."  
"What sort of club?"  
"Well, mostly a book club, but we do more than read books. We actually volunteer at the public library and read to the kids there on the weekends. If you joined you could read the kids your stories. I'm sure they'd like it."  
Sophie smiles at him and the two chat for the remaining time before the bell rings to signal class. They part with Sophie promising to come by the library after school to check out the club.  
The rest of the day goes by rather smoothly with Sophie mostly gliding through her classes since most were just doing basic first day things that involved a lot of introducing one's self. When the day was done she made her way to the library and came upon something that made her pause. What she saw was a scrawny boy with thick glasses and a tall stack of books that had been scattered on the floor around him as he was held by the collar of his shirt by a much larger boy that looked as if he could easily have been on the football team, the team jacket he was wearing with a varsity letter was rather telling on that. It was also clear that the smaller boy was being bullied and it seemed the one holding him wasn't the only one, there were two other boys, also with team jackets and varsity letters, that were egging on the one holding the scrawnier boy. Sophie had never been fond of bullies, she herself had been picked on for her beliefs and her size in the past and she never tolerated it, the bullies learned quickly to leave her be.  
"Hey! What do you think you're doing?"  
"Huh?" The largest of the three bullies turns to look at her in confusion before laughing at the fierce expression on her face. "What's it to you? Why don't you just run along and leave us to teach this nerd his place?"  
"How about not." Cocking her hip to the side and resting her fist on it she levels a stare at the boy, the first thing she had learned in dealing with bullies was don't let yourself act like a victim. Be confident.  
"Tch, like a little girl like you could do anything to stop us. Look kiddie why don't you go find your mommy and play with your dolls. This is our turf and you don't belong."  
"I may look small but I'm not stupid, besides this is my first day here. Leave the kid alone or I'll make you."  
The two have a glaring contest and much to the surprise of the scrawny boy, the jock let's him go with a rough shove towards Sophie before leaving with a grumble to his buddies.  
Once the boy was released Sophie reached out to steady him before moving to help gather his books.  
"Are you alright?"  
"Y yes, thank you. You didn't need to help me out. They usually just knock my books to the ground, laugh and then leave after a few taunts."  
Sophie doesn't hide her frown. "They shouldn't even do that much. Honestly I can't stand bullies."  
"Oh... So is it really your first day here?"  
"Yeah, I'm a freshman. I was just on my way to the library to check out a club I heard about this morning."  
"Oh, you mean the library club?"  
"Yep, that would be the one."  
"Awesome, I joined it last year. It's a lot of fun. Especially since we get pretty much an all access pass to the school's library and archives."  
Sophie just finds herself giggling at his enthusiasm. "Well, my name is Sophie. It's nice to meet you...?"  
"Oh, oh yeah, my name's Gilbert, but everyone in the club just calls me Book."  
"Book?"  
"Yeah, we all get nicknames. I'm probably the biggest bibliophile in the group so they all just call me 'Book'."  
Sophie finds herself chuckling as they enter the library.  
"Book! You're late!"  
"Sorry Jules, I got held up by Fox and his friends. Though I did meet a new member on the way here."  
Sophie had been a bit surprised by the appearance of the older girl that was seeming to be looking over Gilbert after his mention of his run in with the bully. She had chocolate brown hair done up in a slightly messy bun with goggles across the top of her head like a headband. She was wearing what looked like a victorian dress, only the skirt was a little shorter than it should have been, reaching only to her knees, and hemmed unevenly. She also wore tall boots and leggings and all the metal fastening and accessories seemed to be based off gears. Sophie had never seen anything like it before.  
"Hey, Sophie, you made it. I see you've met Book and Jules."  
"Um, yes." Sophie then takes the time to take in Nick's appearance, which she hadn't that morning, when he walks in. He's tall, maybe close to six foot, with sandy blonde hair and hazel eyes. She supposed he was rather handsome but beyond acknowledging it she didn't make a fuss about it.  
Before anything else can be said though she finds herself being wrapped up in a hug from the girl named Jules.  
"Aww, she's too cute. Doc, where did you find her?"  
Nick chuckles, "She was doodling in the common area this morning before school. I just walked up to her to find out what she was drawing. When I saw it I know she'd fit in with us."  
Sophie looks a bit confused that Nick responded to being called Doc, but figured it was his nickname in the group. She briefly wondered if she would get a nickname of her own, but didn't think on it long. While she had been thinking Jules had taken her hands and was now locking her eyes with Sophie's from a startlingly close distance.  
"Oh, please show us. They must be rather impressive to get Doc's attention."  
Sophie gives an uneasy smile but nods. "Just let me get it out of my bag."  
Jules immediately releases Sophie's hands, which allows her to reach into her messenger bag and pull out her notebook. She hands it over to Jules who takes it and studies the cover for a moment.  
"Wow, this is a great drawing. Is this rabbit a character from a book or something. He looks like a warrior. Hehe warrior rabbits."  
"Well, or something. He's the Easter Bunny." Sophie almost cringes when Jules looks at her in shock.  
"No way! The Easter Bunny is soft and fluffy, not tough and macho like this guy."  
Gaining some courage Sophie shrugs. "Well that's how I see him." She reaches forward and opens the book to its first page, a group drawing of the Guardians done in colored pencil. "These are his friends." She points to each respectively. "Sandman, Jack Frost, The Tooth Fairy and Santa Claus."  
"Cool."  
"You're rather talented." Book had leaned over jules shoulder to get a look and was now reaching out and turning the pages for the stunned girl holding the book. As they flipped through the pages they both noticed it was telling a story with not just the pictures but with words.  
Nick drapes an arm around her shoulder then in a half hug. "And that is why I thought she would fit in here. I think the kids at the public library might enjoy hearing some new stories."  
"You're right I think they will love these stories. Where did you ever come up with the ideas for all of this?"  
"Oh, you know I just have a very active imagination I guess." Sophie shrugged sheepishly while telling them the lie. How could she tell this group, as nice as they were, that she still believed in those very stories she was writing? She couldn't, she wasn't quite comfortable enough with them to tell them that, not yet.  
The small group makes idle chatter, the older members filling Sophie in on the doings of the club and letting her know what time to be at the public library on Saturday. Jules is the first to bring up the need for a nickname for Sophie and suggests 'Teller'. The boys laugh as she makes a displeased face and Nick suggests 'Goose' as an alternative.  
"Why 'Goose'?"  
"You know, like Mother Goose. They both tell stories."  
The rest all make 'oh' faces before nodding in agreement to the nickname for their newest member.**

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**I wanted to do an abstract story about what it means to grow up and this is what happened. I'm happy about it though, this is an angle on 'older' Sophie I haven't seen before. So I hope you all enjoy it. Explanations for why the Guardians haven't shown themselves will be made and there will certainly be more of this. Please review to let me know what you think. And I apologize in advance for this will most likely have slow updates.**


	2. Chapter 2

**The rest of the week Sophie spent adjusting to being in high school and meeting with her new friends. She found out she had lunch with all of them and soon they were eating lunch together. Sophie learned that Jules real name was Elizabeth and that she had gotten her name from being a Vernian. She also learned that the style Jules was always dressed in was called steampunk. They would also talk about books they were reading or had read. Jules would occasionally make comments on the stories in Sophie's notebook and make suggestions, most of these she would just laugh off vaguely, not wanting to make things up about the guardians no matter the reason for it.  
Eventually Saturday came and the group of teens met at the public library and Sophie was surprised to see a good sized group of kids in the children's section sitting in a corner by a few chairs set up for a storytime area.  
"Hey kiddos, did you all have a good summer?"  
"Yeah!" The response was energetic as the kids seemed to swarm the teens. One of them noticed Sophie and tugged on Nick's shirt to get his attention.  
"Hey Doc, who's that girl?"  
Nick looks over at her and smirks slightly. "That's Goose, she's going to be telling all of you a story today."  
"Really!  
"Yay!"  
"Story!"  
Sophie was a bit startled by the various shouts of joy from the children that were now surrounding her and pulling/pushing her to the chair at the front of the storytime area. Once she was seated in the large plush chair she noticed that her friends were making themselves comfortable around and amongst the kids. Smiling she reaches into her bag and pulls out her notebook and opens it to the first page.  
"How many of you know about the Guardians?" When she received a few head shakes from the kids she went on. "Well, maybe you just don't know them as the Guardians then. You see, the Guardians are a team made up of legends." She begins to point out and introduce each of the people in the drawing, gaining a few gasps and disbelieved cries from a few of them. As she continues to tell them about who the guardians are she describes their homes.  
"And Jack Frost, well he doesn't have a home like the other Guardians. In fact he doesn't really need one, but a home is more than a fancy palace or castle. It's the place you go to when you want to feel safe. And for Jack Frost that place is here in Burgess. The pond in the park to be specific."  
"You're making that up, Jack Frost can't live in a pond. He has to live with Santa Claus or at the South Pole."  
Sophie, just chuckles. "But the pond is his home. Summer may chase him out, but when winter shows up its always the fastest to freeze and its always got thick ice on it so you never have to worry about falling through. It's like that because Jack lives there and plays on the ice at night."  
When Sophie finishes her stories the children's parents are coming to pick them up. All of them are happy and telling their parents about the guardians. When the last one leaves and the teens are heading out as the library closes, Nick turns to Sophie with a raised eyebrow.  
"So, Jack Frost calls the pond in the park home?"  
"Of course he does. How else do you explain the fact that it always freezes solid every winter and never has thin ice, even in the spring?"  
"Well it is a pond, not a lake."  
Book shakes his head at Nick. "She's right about the pond being unusual. There have been a few scientific explorations to try and explain the phenomenon and so far they haven't been able to figure it out."  
"So, are you saying Jack Frost could be real and really live there Book?"  
"Well, I suppose there is no evidence to the contrary."  
"They're just stories that Goose made up, right Goose?"  
"I never said I made them up. You just assumed that. Though I may have embellished things a bit."  
"Oh, like what sort of things?"  
"Hmm, well I've never been to Santa's workshop, the Tooth Palace or Sandman's Castle, so most of that I had to make up."  
"You forgot to mention the Easter Bunny's hole."  
"His warren. And I didn't mention it cause its the one place I've actually been to."  
"Ok, now you're just pulling our legs Goose. They're just fictional characters."  
"No, hold on a sec Doc. I can't very well believe that Jules Verne lived and experienced what he wrote about without giving Goose the benefit of the doubt. Who's to truly say they don't exist or that she never went to the Easter Bunny's warren?"  
"Wait, so you believe me?"  
"Course. Though I would like to know how and when, maybe we could run off there sometime and gorge on chocolate. The boys can just wait for us here."  
Sophie finds herself laughing conspiratorially with Jules after that, leaving the boys to shrug in confusion at their actions.  
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx  
Half a world away from Burgess in the Warren where E. Aster Bunnymund made his home the six and a half foot rabbit was trying to catch a mischievous white haired boy that was flying around and laughing.  
"Jack!"  
"What was that Roo? Did you call me?"  
"Get back here you little..."  
Jack let himself hover just out of reach of the rabbit, his arms crossed over his belly as he curled up in laughter. He did not notice when his staff slide down a bit to be within reach of the angry rabbit, so he was somewhat surprised when it was yanked from his grip and he dropped to the ground. Jack pouted and rubbed his head a bit as he looked up at Bunny, who was looking down at him with a scowl on his face and his staff held in his crossed arms.  
"Aww, come on Bunny I was just trying to have a bit of fun. I've still got a few weeks before I can head up north for fall and winter."  
"So you decided to crash my Warren instead?"  
"Well yeah, I mean it is winter still down here, even if it never gets that cold down here."  
Bunny remained scowling but he did toss Jack's staff back to him. "Whatever, I have work to do. If you can behave for the next hour I'll let you taste test a new chocolate I'm working on."  
Jack's eyes widen and his smile is big enough to split his face as he hops up and follows after the Easter Bunny.  
"Sweet!"  
They spend the next hour in relative silence with Jack sitting impatiently on his staff in a corner of the Warren's chocolate kitchen and watching Bunny work on his new recipe. When the first batch was finished he tossed a few to Jack and leaned back against the counter as he waited for the verdict.  
Jack quickly devours the treats, smearing chocolate on his cheeks and fingers. "Yummy as always Bunny."  
"Thanks, I thought you'd like it."  
"So what inspired this batch. They were strawberry filled, Sophie's favorite." Bunny turns away as Jack smirks at him. "Aww, don't be shy. It's cute that you still think about her. And its not like you still sneak out every now and then to check up on her or anything." If anything Jack's grin grew wider at Bunny's continued attempt at avoiding his gaze. It really wasn't a surprise to Jack though, he had hung around Burgess quite a bit over his long immortal life and even more so after he became a guardian, since that was where his few believers lived. They had all grown up now and stopped believing but he had stayed in the habit of hanging around the town to keep an eye on them and hope they'd tell their kids about him.  
Bunny sighed before beginning to clean up his work area. "Not like the little ankle biter would remember me. We all decided to keep our distance from them after we beat Pitch."  
"Yeah I know, because if he ever came back again we wanted to keep them out of it. But we still check up on them, even if they don't see us."  
"Tch, its for the best they don't, they can't grow up and forget us if we're always right there."  
"I know, I know. You guys explained that to me after we got back all those years ago." Jack frowns and grabs another piece of chocolate of the rack where they were setting up.  
"So, they can't see you anymore?"  
Jack shakes his head sadly and Bunny sighs. "Sorry kid, give it a few more years and they'll have kids of their own to tell about us, it's a cycle and it takes awhile for it to iron itself out into a regular thing."  
"So you went through this too?"  
"Course I did. We all did. And you know how sorry we are for leaving you alone like we did."  
"I know, I know." Jack picks up another chocolate and studies it for a long moment before popping it into his mouth and smiling again. "I better go, I think there will be an early cold snap up north and I can't miss out on that." With a wave jack is zipping out of the Warren leaving a melancholy rabbit behind.  
"Sometimes that kid can get too serious for his own good."  
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx  
September had gone by rather quickly to Sophie and her friends and it was now a few weeks into October and the club was talking about the upcoming beggar's night.  
"So I talked to the community center and they would love it if we could help out again this year."  
"Help out?"  
"Oh that's right this is your first year with us. Well every Halloween we take out some of the kids whose parents are too busy or need a sitter for the night. After we take them trick or treating we go through the haunted maze set up in the community center."  
"That sounds like fun."  
After the explanation Sophie and Jules begin to plan for what they could dress up as with Book and Doc tossing in their comments and ideas as well. In the end they decide to go as Dorothy(Sophie), the Good Witch with a steampunk flair(Jules), the Scarecrow(Book), and the Tinman(Doc). Costumes decided they head home and begin preparing for the upcoming night.**

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**Yay! Chapter 2! I wanted to make it longer but I couldn't force it. Next time will be Halloween and we'll see how that goes. Please review.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Jack was flying around Burgess, more openly than he had in years. It was Halloween, Beggar's Night, and he wasn't concerned with getting spotted by anyone since he didn't have any believers that would be able to see him anyway. So one could not blame him for noticing that there were a few kids that looked up and gaped at the teen flying around above them as they were tugged along by parents from house to house. Eventually he came to the community center where a large group of kids was gathered around a small group of teens. Jack settled himself on a lamp post nearby and smiled when he recognized Sophie as one of the teens, she was where a blue gingham jumper dress with a white blouse and had her hair done up in pigtails as she was herding a small group of children around her. He frowned though when he saw an older boy dressed in a can and looking like he was trying to be made of metal came over to her with a smile. Jack didn't like the way he was looking at Sophie and it caused him to grip his staff more firmly. Just then a girl dressed as a fairy, though he wasn't sure that was what she was since the wings were made from gears instead of gossamer, looked up at him because of a cold breeze he had kicked up in his irritation. He probably would have picked up and left without noticing her looking right at him if she hadn't said anything.  
"Hey! How did you get up there? Get down from there. What if the kids see you up there?"  
Jack turns to look down at her, thinking she was talking to one of the kids or her friends, but found her looking up at him with a frown on her face and her hands on her hips.  
"Wait you can see me?" Jack looks at the girl in astonishment and points to himself in disbelief.  
"I'm not blind."  
Apparently the girl had drawn Sophie's attention by now and she was looking up at him as well, and several of the kids were staring as well now. He noticed that the boys didn't seem to see him and they were looking at the weird fairy like she had lost her mind.  
"Jules, who are you yelling at?"  
"Jack Frost!" before he could register anything else a stuffed dog was being thrown in his face and he was knocked from his perch from his surprise, dropping his staff and falling to the ground. He heard several kids make 'oo' and 'ow' comments as he laid on the hard pavement trying to figure out what just happened.  
"Oh my god Goose, I think you killed him."  
"He's fine. I think."  
"Goose, Jules, there is nothing there."  
"What are you talking about, there is clearly a boy laying on the ground over here." Several of the kids agree with her as Jack feels a dainty hand brushing his hair from his face.  
"Sorry Jack, you just caught me by surprise."  
Jack ignores the chatter of the other girl and the boys as he looks up into Sophie's green eyes.  
"You still believe?"  
She smiles at him. "Of course I do, even though Jamie doesn't. I still believe. I know you guys have been hiding from us, trying not to get spotted, but I've seen you and Bunny several times over the years."  
Frost blooms across Jack's cheeks. "You weren't supposed to see us."  
"I figured, but you weren't even trying to hide this time."  
"Uh, well I figured you were all grown up now and wouldn't believe."  
Jack finally sits up some and looks over to see the teens arguing back and forth as the kids around them watch as if watching a tennis match.  
"Your friend believes too?"  
"Yeah, she told me she believes because she believes that Jules Verne wasn't writing science fiction, but about his actual experiences. Book and Doc though thought we were just being silly and obviously don't."  
At Jack's curious look Sophie grins at him. "I wrote a storybook about that night and a few of the stories Jamie told me about you and the Guardians. I think I've made a few of the kids believe in you by telling them stories."  
Jack's curious look melts into one of wide eyed astonishment. "You, you really did that?"  
"Goose!" before either could continue Sophie was being wrapped up in the arms of the fairy, Jules as Jack had figured out by now, as the girl rubbed her cheek against Sophie's. "Why can't they see him, help me out here! He's your friend!"  
"Fine, fine. Jules." sophie gets Jules to calm down a bit before motioning to Jack. "Jules, this is Jack Frost."  
It takes Jules a moment for that to register before she is squealing and launching herself at him. "Oh wow! I knew Sophie was telling the truth! And you're way cuter than her pictures."  
Jules continues to babble while settling herself onto his lap. Jack notices the two boys are staring and realize that even though they can't see him they must see that Jules is not sitting on the ground, but something invisible, and it seems to be making them question things.  
"Oh would you two stop being so stubborn. I told you they were real, but you didn't want to believe me."  
It takes both boys a few more minutes before they can see him and he waves at them with a bright smile. After a few more minutes Sophie is pulling Jules off of him and inviting him to go Trick or Treating with them and the kids. He can't say no when all the kids look at him like some sort of hero or idol. As they walk around he learns that Sophie really has been telling stories about him and the Guardians. He answers some of the kids questions about himself and the other Guardians. Some he deflects telling them that Sophie can tell them later. She smiles at him and nods, seeming to understand that he didn't want to ruin their good mood with answers that may not be as fun as they were hoping for.  
Eventually they finish going around to the houses and head back to the community center for the haunted house. Jack has fun going through it with them and notices how Doc, he had been properly introduced by Jules to the two boys, seemed to be trying to get close to Sophie. He was glad to notice that she was unaware of the older boy's attentions. When the night was done and the kids were all picked up by parents and taken home, Jack hung around, offering to walk Sophie home so they could catch up. He caught a glare sent to him by Doc and almost smirked, but thought better of it.  
"So, you've been telling stories about us to kids at the library?"  
"Yeah. They seem to really like them. I think a couple of the boys were going to try and dress up like you tonight. They weren't in the group we took though."  
"You've been making believers for me?" Jack stops and stares at Sophie and she turns and smiles at him.  
"Of course, they love hearing about you the most since you're sort of still a kid, like they are. I wish I knew more about all of you though, then I could really tell them some stories."  
"Oh yeah, they were asking a lot of questions about me weren't they?"  
Sophie nods and the two continue walking. "Yeah, and you said you'd have me tell them the answers to the ones you dodged. So, what could be so bad you wouldn't want to share with them?"  
Jack is silent as he walks, swinging his staff about and painting pictures in frost over the sidewalk. "I spent most of my time not knowing what I was meant to do or why I was here. No one could see me, touch me, hear me. And to be honest, the other Guardians never really seemed to care about me until Pitch... Anyway, I didn't think the kids really would want to hear how it was like before I became a guardian."  
Sophie looks thoughtful, "Is that why you flinched when Jamie hugged you that day. Were you afraid he would go through you?"  
Jack nods.  
"How is it that you're able to trust them then?"  
"The other Guardians? Well, after everything calmed down and we were able to relaxe up at the pole, they sat me down and we talked. They heard me out, apologized for how they had acted and explained to me why. Apparently they all had complete memories of why they are the way they are and they assumed I did as well. They didn't know that I didn't remember, that I had no idea why I was always getting in their ways. Things are better now though. I do remember, thanks to Tooth."  
"Tooth?"  
"The Tooth Fairy."  
"Right, you know I was scarred for life by those teeth she shoved in my face?"  
Jack just grins.  
"So how did she help you remember?"  
"She guards the memories of childhood. The teeth she collects contain those memories and she had mine. I was able to see who I was and why I was chosen by the Man in the Moon to be a Guardian."  
Jack sees Sophie's look, expecting him to elaborate.  
"I was taking my little sister skating, it was on the pond here in town. She got onto some thin ice, she was scared. I had to help her, had to do something, so I told her we were going to play a game. I managed to get her off the thin ice and onto the thicker ice, the safe ice, but I, I had swapped places with her and I wound up falling through. That was how I became Jack Frost. I saved her though and that's what really matters."  
Sophie felt a tear slide down her cheek at Jack's story. Even if he was ok with it, it was still sad to hear that he had died.  
"Wait did you say the pond near here?"  
"Yeah."  
"So you grew up in Burgess?"  
"Yeah, I did. Why are you suddenly so excited?"  
"Because, the kids will love that. I'll need to start working on some of that right away. What did you look like?"  
"Uh, what?"  
"Before you were Jack Frost. A name would be great too, I could maybe look through the old records."  
"Um well, brown hair and eyes but otherwise the same. I can't really remember my name, but it was the early seventeen hundreds."  
The rest of the walk to the Bennett house was full of Sophie asking Jack questions about his life, both before and after he became Jack Frost. When they were in front of the house Sophie gave Jack a hug and bid him farewell with a smile before heading inside. Once she had Jack was picked up by the wind and carried off.  
"Wind, let's go to the Warren. I think a certain kangaroo will find this quite interesting."**

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Hehe, So who expected that? Also yay for two chapters in one day! Please review!


	4. Chapter 4

**Jack quickly made it to the Warren and entered with a burst of cold air that had Bunnymund scowling at him.  
"Oi, you always come blowing in here with your cold and snow. Shouldn't you be up north?"  
Jack just smiles as he settles down, well sort of, he's hovering just slightly so his chin is resting on his arms that are crossed over the top of his staff.  
"Yeah, but I thought I'd share something with you."  
"What a cold?"  
"Nope. Sophie saw me."  
Bunny blinks for a moment taking in Jack's grin.  
"Quit pulling my leg, Sophie's not such an ankle biter anymore. She stopped believing in us a long time ago."  
Bunny turns away and Jack just catches the sad look that flits through his bright green eyes. It causes him to lose his smile and tilt his head to the side in confusion.  
"Hey Bunny, why can't adults see us?"  
"Because they don't believe, you blighter."  
"So if they did believe, then they could see us right?"  
"Well, uh. You know I don't think that's ever come up before."  
"So if Sophie were to still believe there would be nothing stopping her from seeing us, right?"  
"Well, course, I suppose. But she doesn't believe. We made sure they all thought that was just a dream, remember? And we kept our distance from all those kids so they wouldn't be used by Pitch, and so they could grow up, like all kids do."  
"Yeah, well apparently we stink at hiding." Jack sets down on the ground and grins as he leans on his staff. "Sophie said she kept catching glimpses of us. But I am far from complaining. Thanks to her my believer count is going up."  
"What?"  
"Yeah, you should have seen it. She tells stories about all of us to the kids at the library in Burgess. Some of them were even dressing up as me for Halloween. It was pretty cool."  
"Jack..."  
"Come on Bunny. I thought you'd be happier about this. If she hasn't forgotten, hasn't stopped believing, don't you think that could mean something? And she's getting others to believe. She had some friends with her and they all saw me. well two of them needed some prompting but the one girl was able to right away."  
"Wait, teenagers? Non-believers were convinced to see you after having stopped believing?"  
"Yeah." At Bunny's serious look Jack lost his own smile. "Bunny, is is that bad?"  
"Mmm, yes, no. We need to get to the pole. We'll take my tunnels."  
Jack looks a bit nervous but nods. "Hey, Bunny you don't think she'll get hurt, do you?"  
"No mate. She'll be fine, but we should still talk to the others about this."  
Jack nods as Bunny thumps the ground and the two disappear down the hole he created.  
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Meanwhile Sophie had gone up to her room after Jack had left and pulled out her notebook and began working on a new story, Jack's story. She knew what to leave in and what to leave out so it would be as fun as possible for the kids she'd tell it to. When she went to add pictures she paused before using her computer to look up what people would wear in the time that Jack had told her he had become Jack Frost. she smiled as she began drawing him in a white loose shirt with a brown vest and cloak over it. She drew the moon shining down on him as he came out of the ice and his happy face as he ran around discovering his powers. She worked until morning, nodding off over her desk as the first rays of light peak through her window.  
That was how her mother found her when she came to wake her daughter for breakfast. The woman looked down and saw what had obviously kept her daughter awake all night and smiled at seeing the pages left open in the notebook. Mrs. Bennett was well aware of her daughter's hobby of creating stories and bringing them to life. She was happy her daughter had such a wonderful imagination and that she was becoming so helpful in the community. She never thought why her daughter seemed so into these fairytales, but saw no harm in letting her create them. So instead of waking the girl she gently lifted her and, with abit of effort, moved her to her bed and tucked her in, she was certainly glad her little girl had remained rather petit. tucking her in she left the room and let her daughter sleep, she'd wake up on her own eventually.  
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At the pole, Bunny and Jack had headed straight for North's workshop. They knocked on the door, as the sign on the door requested, and were beckoned in by the jolly guardian of wonder. Needless to say he was a bit confused by the visit.  
"Jack, Bunny! What brings you two here?"  
"Jack was seen by Sophie last night."  
"Sophie? Ah, yes, little girl who got into Warren. What is big problem?"  
"Mate, she's a little old to be believing in any of us. I know we don't like that they have to grow up but its what the little ankle biters do."  
"I still do not see problem."  
"She managed to convince her friends, non believers, to believe. And from what Jack says it wasn't that hard for her to do so."  
North rubs his chin in thought. "Is still not problem. Sophie is most likely Missus, she is good with children, Jack?"  
"Hmm, oh yeah. She had a whole gaggle of them hanging off her every word. apparently she does a storytime type thing at the local library. Oh and get this, her friends gave her the nickname 'Goose'."  
"Goose?" It was asked in unison by both North and Bunny.  
"Yeah, like Mother Goose."  
Jack's grin has North grinning as well. "See is no problem. Sophie is Missus."  
"What does that even mean!"  
"Hmm, you have not heard of Missus?"  
At both Bunny and Jack's negative responses North explains.  
"A Missus is a special child that Man in Moon chooses for each Guardian. Is child that will continue to believe all through life. They are special and only one is born for each generation. I met one many years ago. Her name was Noel." North strokes his beard as he looks reflective before continuing. "She was very persistent and eventually convinced me to bring her to Pole."  
"Wait, really!"  
"Why hadn't I ever heard of this? You know we can't just bring people to our homes."  
"Hmm, is not like I have hidden her, where you think idea of 'Mrs. Claus' came from. She is usually busy in kitchens though, keeping elves from hurting themselves when they try to steal cookies."  
Jack seems rather eager now, learning there really was a Mrs. Claus was news to him.  
"So that means Sophie...?"  
"Yes! If Guardian she is attached to accepts her, then she will become Missus."  
Bunny seems to grumble irritably. "So how do we figure out which one of us it is?"  
North's eye seems to twinkle with mirth. "Is obviously one of you. I already have Missus and Sandy has talked to Man in Moon that he is not ready for one and will find on his own. As for Tooth, her missus would not be little girl."  
Jack seems to grin before hopping into the air and whirling around a bit. "Well that's just great isn't it Bunny. May the best man win!" And with that he speeds off, leaving Bunny and North behind. Bunny seems to be rather angry from the taunt and North just chuckles as he watches the oversized rabbit make a hole and dive in. He knew exactly where he was going. He had to give Jack credit for how well he played the older Guardian. He just hoped that Bunny figured out what Jack was doing before he hurt the boy. He shrugs and gets back to work on his ice models, thinking that if things get out of hand between them he can step in.**

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So, I'm on a bit of a roll... Also extremely bored so I have nothing else to do and you get spammed with chapters. Anyway I hope everyone is liking this so far. I know I may have lost some of you with the Missus thing, but I really wanted to try working in that part of the Santa Claus legend, it had to come from somewhere so there it is. Questions, comments, flames(toasty), leave a review.


	5. Chapter 5

**A hole opens up by Jack's pond in Burgess and Bunny pops out, the hole closing behind him. He looks around, not really sure how to go about this. He didn't want to be seen by everyone, more kids believed in him than in Jack, so he couldn't just hop around looking for Sophie. Maybe he should have gone straight to her house and waited in the backyard or something. He grabs the sides of his head in aggravation for not thinking to do that from the beginning. Then he stops and pulls one paw across his face as he sighs. What was he even thinking? He couldn't just do this. so what if she was a Missus, that didn't mean she had to come with one of them. One of them, that's right she could be Jack's Missus. Why did thinking that make his chest hurt like this? Shaking his head to clear it he tells himself he's just going to stop Jack from doing anything stupid.  
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Jack was still grinning as he pulled up to Sophie's window and taps on the glass. He sees her shift on her bed at the noise before peaking out from under her covers at the window. With a little difficulty she manages to get out of bed and open the window for Jack.  
"Jack... I'm tired, why did you wake me up?"  
Jack just chuckles as he floats in and settles on her windowsill. "Its well into the afternoon, you're sleeping the whole day away."  
"I was up late."  
"Oh, up late doing what?"  
Sophie sleepily points to her desk as she pulls out a few clothes from her dresser. Jack looks over at the desk and see a notebook, closer inspection shows drawings of him with words telling his story. He stares in awe at pages, flipping a few so he can see the whole thing.  
"Wow, this is, you were up all night working on this?"  
"Mm, yeah. I'm going to go take a shower and get dressed. Feel free to look at the rest of what's in there, just be careful ok."  
"Sure." Jack picks up the book and flips to the beginning as Sophie goes to get ready for the day.  
When Sophie returned from her shower in fresh clothes she saw Jack settled on her bed with her notebook on his crossed legs, totally engrossed in the stories held within.  
"So what do you think?"  
"I think you're really good at this. How did you remember so much? You were so young."  
Sophie shrugs. "I don't know I just did. So what brought you back so soon, I half expected you to go back to trying to hide from me again."  
"Hmm, well you know, you haven't stopped believing anyway, so what's the point. Besides, its nice to have someone closer to my age to talk to."  
Sophie raises a brow at Jack, an amused look on her face. "Aren't you over 300 years old?"  
"No, I meant, I was only sixteen when I died, so I'll always be sixteen."  
"Ah, I see. I guess the other Guardians aren't as much fun then?" Sophie settles down beside him on the bed.  
"Well they can be, its just they have more serious work than I do. Not to mention Sandy and Tooth don't get breaks like the rest of us."  
"But isn't it always winter somewhere?"  
"Well yeah, but in spring and fall, its sort of a limbo deal. Places that are cold all year round don't need me much I'm really only needed in winter where you can find people, children. I'm just one part of what makes up winter."  
"Ah, I get it. You help winter along, you don't necessarily get to control it."  
"Right." Jack smiles over at Sophie. "So wanna get your friends and meet me in the park? We could go ice skating on the pond."  
Sophie giggles a bit at how hopeful Jack looks. "Isn't it a bit early for the pond to freeze?"  
"Naw, I can make it nice and frozen for a few hours at least."  
"Alright, I'll give them a call and we'll meet you there."  
"Great!" Jack jumps up, hovering in the air before zipping out the window with a wave. Sophie can't help but smile after him before going to call her friends and getting her skates dug out of her closet.  
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Jack was flying around his pond laughing merrily and keeping an eye out for a certain rabbit he knew had to be somewhere in town. Ahah, there he was, worrying himself by the pond over something. Bunny was just too predictable.  
"Hey there Bunny. I was wondering if you'd show up."  
Bunny seems to be a bit off balance about something and Jack just leans on his staff as he watches the rabbit get twitchy.  
"Yeah, well I couldn't just let you bother Sophie over this whole thing. I'm only here to supervise and make sure you don't do something stupid." Just then Bunny seems to notice the freezing pond. "And what are you doing, its a bit early for it to freeze this."  
"Well, Sophie wanted to go skating and who am I to refuse her." Jack smirks at Bunny, who is frowning at his fellow Guardian.  
"Whatever, ya gumby. I'll just settle in over here then and keep an eye on things so you don't botch up."  
Jack watches as Bunny really does settle in a shadow and lock his gaze on the area of the pond. He grins at the rabbit before going of to make sure the ice was nice and thick, didn't need any accidents. By the time Sophie and her friends arrive at the pond Jack has it nearly frozen solid.  
"Bout time you showed up I was beginning to worry. So who's ready to skate?"  
"Are you sure this is safe? Its rather early in the year for the pond to freeze."  
Jack taps it with his staff and they all hear the loud thud it makes. "Its nearly solid, right to the bottom."  
Jules is the first to sit on the ground and begin to trade her shoes for skates, Sophie is next followed by a reluctant Doc and Book. It isn't long before the four teens are skating around the pond with Jack. At one point Jules grabs Jack and makes him push her around so she can go even faster. Doc is skating beside Sophie and chatting with her as they go around and Jules notices Jack watching them from time to time. Which was how she saw him glance off to the side at something. at first when she followed his gaze she didn't see anything, then she made out the shape of a large rabbit and nearly bent over with laughter. She managed to contain herself before quietly speaking.  
"I didn't realize you played Cupid in your spare time Jack."  
Jack blinks and looks down at the girl he is pushing around. At her mischievous grin he grins back. "Well you know, just don't tell anyone, Cupid might just get mad at me for not asking his help on this."  
"So there really is a Cupid then?"  
"Yeah, I'm not his favorite person though, one to many blizzards on Valentine's Day."  
Jules chuckles. "So am I to assume that is the Easter Bunny hiding over there and that you are trying to make him jealous."  
"Yep."  
Jules smiles widely, "Give me a good push toward Sophie."  
Jack looks curious but acts on the request, pushing Jules hard toward Sophie. The two collide and both lose their balance. Jack catches Jules so she doesn't hit the ice but Sophie was pushed into Doc, who was now holding her tightly, their faces very close together causing both to blush madly. Jack and Jules share a look of triumph before looking over at Bunny's hiding spot and seeing him seething. Bunny catches their grins after a moment and looks ready to throw his boomerang at them.  
"I think we made him mad."  
"Don't worry, he's always like that."  
"What are you two talking about?"  
Sophie had righted herself and was looking at the two questioningly.  
Jack just points over to Bunny, who goes from angry to panicked when Sophie looks over at him.  
"Bunny!" Sophie speeds over to the edge of the pond where Bunny has been hiding, a bright smile on her face.  
"Hello there Sophie." The large rabbit seems almost shy now as Sophie reaches out to him, inviting him onto the ice.  
"You have to meet my friends."  
"Ah, uh, sure."  
Sophie coaxes Bunny out onto the ice and allows for her friends to get a proper look at him now that he isn't hiding in the shadows. Book's jaw drops as he takes in the six and a half foot tall rabbit with a boomerang strapped to his back. Doc seems to just frown at how Sophie seems so excited to see him. While Jules is resisting the urge to run up and pet his fur.  
Sophie introduces them all and soon is helping bunny get used to being on the ice, smiling at him as she holds his paws to steady him. When they all begin to feel the cold, aside from Jack, Jules invites them back to her place stating that her parents are out of town for the weekend and won't be back until after school the next day. They arrive at the house and are not all that surprised by it being a Victorian since it seems to be what would most suit Jules herself.  
Once inside Jules offers hot chocolate to everyone and they settle in around the living room sipping their warm beverages, though Jack was just handed a glass of cold chocolate milk. While they all sit around talking and joking Sophie pulls out her notebook and begins drawing and writing. Doc takes notice and moves to sit beside her, eyebrow arched as he looks over her shoulder.  
"Got another story idea?"  
"Hmm, yeah."  
Suddenly Sophie straightens up and looks over at Book. "Hey Book, do you think you could help me look something up this week?"  
"Sure, what are you needing to look up? Is it for your stories?"  
"Well sort of. I just want to look through some records and see if I can find something Jack told me about."  
"Something Frostbite told you about? What did he tell you about that has you wanting to look through records."  
"Well," She looks a bit unsure before Jack nods to her, giving her the go ahead. "He told me how he became Jack Frost. I thought it might be rather interesting to find out what happened to his family."  
Book rubs his chin thoughtfully. "Well I can certainly try to help you with that, but a name and location would certainly narrow the search parameters."  
"Oh well, I know he grew up here in Burgess and drowned in the pond in the early seventeen hundreds. At least that's what he told me last night."  
"Yeah. Can't remember my name though."  
Jack seemed to not notice the stares he was getting from the others in the room, sans Sophie. Even Bunny was a bit speechless about learning Jack's origins.  
"You drowned? In the pond we were just skating on?"  
Jack nods, finally noticing that everyone was staring at him. "Well yeah. Why is that weird?"  
"I don't know I guess we all just, you don't act like it bothers you at all."  
"Why should it? I saved my sister, she would have fallen through if I hadn't. Though I would like to know what happened to her after I died."  
Despite the somber air still hanging around them, Jules managed to happily change the subject.  
"So how did you become the Easter Bunny then?"  
As they all listened to Bunny go on about his past and Sophie took notes, they managed to relax. Eventually they all had to go home and Bunny grabbed Jack before he could fly off and dragged him down through one of his tunnels. Sophie and her friends just laughed as they waved goodbye. None of them noticed the dark shadows that seemed deeper than what would be natural and shifted ominously.**

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And that chapter is finished. So anyone want to try and guess who was in the deep dark shadows, the first to correctly guess it will get a one-shot of their choice, so please review.


	6. Chapter 6

**A figure dashes through the shadows of Burgess angrily muttering to himself.  
"That no good little interloper. He knows its my job to play matchmaker."  
The figure finally steps out into a beam of moonlight, he has soft curly blonde hair that reaches his chin and is dressed all in white with two small feathered wings on his back and carrying a curly little bow and quiver of heart shaped arrows. He looks up at the moon before yelling at it. "Make him mind his own business, it's my job to make people fall in love! Why can't Jack just mind his own business for once." The figure storms off into the night grumbling about blizzards on his holiday and complaining about how stupid rabbits don't have a clue about how difficult Jack Frost really can be.  
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The next day Sophie is waking up refreshed and preparing for school when her mother calls up to tell her that school had been cancelled due to a snow storm that blew in overnight. Sophie blinks in surprise before going to her window and peaking out. Sure enough there was a good few inches of snow on the ground, not usually enough to cancel school, but she figured the city was caught off guard by the early storm and wasn't prepared to clear the streets.  
"Huh, Jack must be wanting to hang out again today." Smiling she grabs her notebook and messenger bag before hurrying downstairs. "Mom, I'm going to the park."  
"Ok, dress warmly, don't want Jack Frost nipping at your nose."  
Sophie grins and pulls on her coat and hat, she doesn't tell her mother that Jack Frost wouldn't nip her nose, he knows she wouldn't appreciate. All the same she bundles up and heads out.  
Once she reaches the park she looks around for that familiar blue hoodie. Suddenly a load of snow is dumped on her, causing her to squeal in surprise before looking up into the laughing, grinning face of Jack Frost.  
"Hey there Sophie."  
"Jack Frost!" She sends him a mock glare that is completely ruined by the laughter in her own eyes.  
He settles down to the ground and leans on his staff casually. "So what do you think of the snow day so far?"  
Sophie grins, "Well I think it is unseasonably early. Its only just November and we're already getting snow."  
Jack looks a bit sheepish at Sophie's light scolding before grinning at her once again. "So where are your friends?"  
Sophie shrugs her shoulders. "Not sure, I wasn't going to call them out this early incase they had gone back to bed after learning about the snow day."  
"Aww, well that's no fun."  
"They are still teenagers, sleeping in is their specialty."  
Jack and Sophie share a grin before Jack speaks up again. "Well that works out for the best anyway. North said I could bring you to the pole, he might have gotten upset if I brought your friends too."  
"Wait! You mean the North Pole, Santa's workshop?"  
Jack nods, "Yep, when I told him about how you wrote that story about me and my beginnings he asked if you would like to write his story."  
Sophie's eyes widen and she eagerly nods her head in agreement. "Of course I would."  
Jack laughs at Sophie's energetic response and is soon scooping her up into his arms, causing her to wrap hers around his neck and shoulders.  
"Hold on tight! Wind! To the pole!"  
And with that Sophie felt herself being whipped up into the air with Jack. Her arms instinctually tighten around him and she squeals and laughs at the feeling of being tossed about like a snowflake by the wind. It surprisingly doesn't take them long to reach their destination and when they do Sophie realizes just how cold it is and Jack is quick to carry her to the door, which is opened by a yeti, and into the warmth of the workshop beyond. He sets her down near the center of the room, in full view of the globe covered in hundreds of thousands of blinking lights. She stares in awe at the many flying toys that zip through the air, wonders at the yetis making the toys as she leans over the railing to take in the entire space that is the interior of the workshop and fascination at the wonderful atmosphere of the entire place. She pulls out her notebook without taking her wandering eyes off the many scenes surrounding her and opens it up while pulling out a pencil. Soon she is sketching and taking notes, twirling around to take in everything there is to see. She doesn't even notice when North walks up next to Jack, who has just been watching her, and lays his large hand on the boy's narrow shoulder.  
"Welcome Sophie! To Santoff Clausen. I trust your trip here was pleasant."  
Sophie turns with a smile to the man known the world over as Santa Claus and nods. "It was great, a little cold, but what can you expect taking the Jack Express."  
Her smile has North chuckling deeply before waving her over and inviting her to walk with him through the workshop. "Come, we will talk in my office. Jack, try not to make mess, is getting close to Christmas."  
"Sure thing North. I might just take a few of the elves out for a snowball fight though."  
"Is fine, keeps them out of way."  
With that he sweeps Sophie out of the room and across the floor of the main room into his office. Leaving Jack to do as he will with the elves.  
Once they are in North's office Sophie is once again awestruck by the many ice carvings, some finished, others in progress and a few broken ones. North motions her to a seat by the fireplace and settles into the one opposite it.  
"I always thought the elves made the toys."  
"Ah ha, we just let them think that. They are much too troublesome to really be trusted much with something so important. Are more like children, they play with toys to make sure they are what children want."  
"I see, so, the yetis make the toys and the elves play-test them."  
"Yes!"  
Sophie nods and turns to a clean page in her notebook, her pencil poised over the paper like a reporter would during an interview. "Jack said you wanted me to tell your story, like I did with him."  
North nods and strokes his beard in thought. "Is true, but also I wanted to see you and talk to you about something."  
"Oh, have I done something wrong?" Sophie seems a bit nervous, she would hate to have done something to upset one of the Guardians, let alone Santa Claus.  
"No, you have done nothing wrong. However I would like for you to meet with and talk to my wife, you and she have much in common and she would be better at explaining things than myself." Sophie relaxes as North smiles reassuringly at her. "Now, let me tell you about how I became a Guardian."  
And so he went on to explain his own history to the wide eyed girl that sat across from him, occasionally she would stop him and ask a question about something and all throughout she was taking notes and making sketches. She also learned more about the Guardians and the globe she had seen when she first entered the workshop. Eventually Sophie was out of questions and North was out of stories. It was then that the large Russian stood up and motioned for Sophie to follow him.  
"Come, we introduce you to Noel. She would be in kitchen. She has taken it upon herself to keep elves from hurting selves down there. Also keeps them from burning down whole workshop."  
Sophie chuckles at North's comment and follows him through the crowded workspace and down a hallway that feels warmer than the rest of the building so far. Eventually she hears clattering pans and a gentle voice scolding what she assumed to be an elf. When they finally entered the kitchen Sophie was overwhelmed with the sites, smells and sounds. There were a few yetis about, taking things from ovens and stirring things in pots. But there, right in the center of the organized chaos was a woman in her mid twenties wearing a brown flour smudged dress of the style worn by frontier women before the Civil War. Her blonde hair was tied back in a loose bun and she was wiping her hands on a white apron that had clearly seen a lot of action that day if the smudges of chocolate, flour, sprinkles and bits of candy canes stuck to the bottom edge, just high enough that it was clear the elves had stuck them there.  
"Ah, Noel!"  
"North!" The woman smiles as she turns to the large man and Sophie is able to tell she herself is a rather petite woman, not unlike herself, though certainly a few inches taller than her. The woman turns to her and her smile seems to widen.  
"So this is her, the girl that still believes and is sharing that belief with others?"  
"Yes. This is Sophie Bennett."  
Noel claps her hands excitedly and begins to take off her apron. "Lily, look after things for me. I have some business to attend to. And North!"  
"Yes."  
"Find that Jack Fellow and send him down here to distract these little troublemakers, they're making a mess of everything." It was then she seems to notice the bits of candy cane stuck to the bottom of her apron and lets out a sigh of exasperation. "Honestly I sometimes think I should let nature take its course with those little creatures."  
North pats her on the back and offers her a smile and she playfully glares at him as she shoves the dirty apron at him. "Take that to the laundry and get your friend to remove the elves from my kitchen." Turning back to Sophie, she smiles and leads her out of the kitchen and back through the halls, taking a turn before the main area of the workshop and leading her to a small quiet room with several bookcases and a basket with knitting and embroidery projects in it. Sophie also took note of a pair of pistols and a rifle mounted above the fireplace that had her curiously tilting her head to the side, though she didn't say anything.  
"Now, you must be curious as to why I wanted to see you."  
Sophie nods and sits in a seat at Noel's gesture to do so, the older woman also sitting.  
"When North told me about you I insisted he bring you here and let me talk to you. I know he told Jack and Bunnymund, but I doubt anyone has bothered to inform you of your potential." Noel gently reaches over and takes Sophie's hands in her, holding them between them as she continues. "I was once like you, believing in legends despite growing too old for such fantasies. To be honest, they were much better than the reality I had to deal with at the time. My family never had much, but every Christmas my brothers, sisters and myself would find wonderful gifts tucked into our stockings, fruit, candies, even a few toys. Our parents always seemed surprised by the gifts and thought one of our neighbors might have been sneaking in to leave them." The woman chuckles. "Then, one year, I woke up in the middle of the night, I was, hmm fourteen maybe, I heard the sounds of someone in the house. Curious and thinking it was the mysterious neighbor, but hoping it was Santa Claus, I peaked over the edge of the loft my siblings and I shared to spy on the source. You can imagine my surprise when I saw North placing gifts in our stockings and shoes. Of course I called him by the name I knew him at the time. He seemed just as surprised by me as I was by him. Needless he hushed me back to sleep and I complied. But I never forgot that he was real. Over the next few years I had many a young man court me, but something told me to turn down each one and so I did. My parents were not very pleased with me, telling me I would need to pick someone eventually or become a spinster. Eventually they had had enough though and on Christmas Eve of my twenty-fourth year they announced that they had arranged for me to marry the local preacher who had just recently lost his wife. I of course was furious and that night I stayed up and waited for Santa Claus to come. And sure enough when I heard him outside, visiting the neighbors for there were no children left under my parent's roof, I ran outside. I saw his sleigh, a magnificent red with gold and holly trim, decked in bells and pulled by eight reindeer. It was stopped in the center of our settlement and I rushed to it just as I saw him making his way from the neighbor's house back to it."  
Sophie has found herself sitting on the very edge of her seat listening to the tale Noel is sharing with her.  
"I begged him to take me with him and I honestly think the only reason he did was because I was able to see, because I still believed. When we returned after he finished his rounds he showed me to a room and told me to rest while he consulted with the Man in the Moon, he had explained how it was so unusual for a grown woman to still believe in and to still see him. When I woke up he explained to me that the Man in the Moon had chosen me to be a Missus, his Missus, and while I should have felt upset over yet another arranged marriage, I couldn't bring myself to be. It felt so right to be with him, we were soul mates you see and he felt the same way about me. After that we were married by the Man in the Moon and I was granted the ability to share in North's immortality."  
Here Noel made sure she was looking into Sophie's eyes and Sophie noted how blue this woman's eyes were.  
"And my dear that is why I wanted to see you. For you as well are a Missus, or you could be if both you and the Guardian you are meant for want it enough."  
Sophie can't help but blush and duck her head at learning this. She had been chosen to be the soulmate to one of the Guardians, their Missus. Which one though?  
Noel seems to pick up on Sophie's internal questions and lifts her chin back up so they are looking at eachother once again.  
"Sophie, I know you are wanting to know which Guardian you are intended for, but let me assure you it really is your choice. However, something tells me you already know who it is, you would have known from the moment you first met him who your heart belongs to. Just as I did."  
"Will I have to become his Missus right away? I mean, what about school? My family? I can't just leave them with no warning."  
"You're right, you can't. And you are still young. Take your time and think about it, nothing is set in stone and if you find you would rather not become a Missus there is nothing that can force you to be one."  
"Thank you." Noel smiles and Sophie finds it is contagious as she is soon smiling as well.**

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So... No one thought outside the box, sorry that might have been a bit hard *sweatdrop*. Anyway the guy hiding in the shadows should be easy to guess now. Also Yay! You got to meet Noel and she explained to Sophie what it is to be a candidate for a Missus, so do you love her, hate her? Also had someone ask if Jules would be Jack's Missus and I'll leave that up to you guys, I've got a poll on my profile or you can leave your vote in a review. I could easily make her a Missus as well or just leave her as Jack's partner in crime, your choice. So please leave a review, and I do like flames since I can use them to keep me toasty when Jack Frost is freezing off my toes.


	7. Chapter 7

**Jules was not necessarily in the best of moods. She had woken up that morning to find out that school was cancelled due to a freak snow storm blown in over night, she suspected Jack had something to do with this. That wasn't even a bad thing though, who doesn't enjoy a snow day. Then she had decided to go out to pond and see if Sophie would show up and maybe the two could ice skate again with Jack. Arriving at the pond though showed that no one else was there, not even Jack Frost. So she had busied herself building a steampunk snowman. after she had finished it her phone had rung and she had answered it, surprised to get a call from Sophie's mom. She was wondering if she had seen Sophie, thinking quickly Jules had told her that the two of them were hanging out in the park and was then offered a warm lunch, which she had to turn down because she had no idea where Sophie really was and couldn't just show up without her. After hanging up, Jules had started work on another snowman, thinking Sophie must be off somewhere with Jack, though she had no idea why.  
Now, though, she was sitting on a bench in the park, near the pond, as the sun set and it was only getting colder as it got darker out. Pouting Jules was almost ready to give up and head home, Sophie could deal with her parents on her own. She stopped though when a stiff breeze blew past her and she looked behind her to see Sophie being set down by Jack.  
"Where have you been?"  
Sophie and Jack then look up and notice her and Sophie has the decency to look sheepish while Jack just sends her that roguish smile.  
"North wanted to see her again so he asked me to bring her up for the day."  
"North, you mean Santa?"  
"Yes, he does. I'm sorry Jules I should have called you."  
"No, its okay. Your mother called though, you spent the day with me building snowmen if she asks."  
That draws Jack's attention away from the snowmen he was just inspecting, "You built these?"  
"Yes, what else was I going to do all day? I wish I could have come with you to Santa's workshop, I bet it was really cool."  
"It was, I made some sketches of it." Here Sophie pulls out her notebook and flips it open to the correct page to show her sketches of the workshop and all the toys. Before she can start going on about the things she saw that day Jack grabs their attention.  
"Hey I hate to go, but I have to, gotta cover up this random bit of snow with a larger area. I shouldn't need to warn you about being prepared for an early winter with lots of snow." He grins and waves at them as he takes off, the wind picking him up and tossing him about like a snowflake.  
Jules watches him go. "I am so jealous right now Goose. You got to fly didn't you?"  
Sophie nods. "It was fun, but cold. If I ever get to do it again I think I will want a warmer coat."  
"So why did Santa want to see you?"  
"He wanted me to tell his story and he told me a lot about the Guardians and what it means to be one."  
"Wow, sounds fun."  
"It was. Oh and I got to meet Mrs. Claus."  
"Really? So she really exists too?"  
"Of course." Sophie stops in their walk home and seems to think about something. Jules stops and turns to watch her. "But actually, she said we have a lot in common."  
"Like what?"  
"Our ability to believe. She told me about how it means something." Sophie continues at Jules inquiring look. "It means I could be the soulmate of one of the Guardians."  
"Could be? But which one?"  
Sophie shrugs. "She didn't say, she said I would know though, that I would have felt the connection to them since I first met them."  
Jules nods in understand and the two hurry off eventually splitting up with promises to talk more the next day at school.**

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Sorry its so short, but this was a good stopping place. Not much left though. Also, still accepting votes on Jules being Mrs. Frost. So far I have 2 in favor and 1 against.

I also have a question for all of you out there. I'm working on another RotG fic that will get posted after I finish this one, but I have a dilemma of sorts. What constitutes an OC? For example, the Wind. At the beginning of the movie Jack calls on it to take him home, meaning it is a separate entity from him and one recognized in the canon. Giving that character form and a name then would that be an OC? Let me know in your reviews.


	8. Chapter 8

**The next day Jules and Sophie met up with Book and Doc before classes. Sophie could tell that Jules really want to say something or ask something about her adventures the day before but she kept them to herself. The day went on as normal and after school the group was meeting up in the library and Sophie was pulling out her notebook and handing it to Jules.  
"I know you've been wanting to see it all day."  
Jules smiles broadly and takes the notebook before settling down and flipping through it.  
Doc watches in slight confusion and turns to Sophie.  
"Jack came by yesterday and said I had been invited to the North Pole. Santa wanted to tell me how he became well Santa."  
"Nice, so she's jealous she couldn't go?"  
Sophie nods. "It was amazing. The workshop was busy and crowded but everything seemed to have its place or function."  
Doc chuckles as Book is now leaning over Jules' shoulder to get a look at the sketches and notes Sophie made from her visit. Questions about her trip then begin coming from Jules and Book and Sophie does her best to answer them until it is time for them to all go home.  
When they leave to go their separate ways Doc follows after Jules, calling for her to wait up.  
"What's up Doc?"  
"Why was she really invited to the Pole?"  
Jules looks thoughtful for a moment before looking apologetically at Doc. "Sorry, Doc, you're right. Apparently Mrs. Claus wanted to talk with Sophie about her potential."  
"Potential?"  
"Mmhmm. Yeah Sophie has the potential to become a Missus for one of the other Guardians. I know you like her Doc, but her heart was claimed a long time ago."  
The boy seems to droop at the information before asking, "So what is a Missus then?"  
"Well according to Goose, a Missus is sort of the soulmate of a Guardian. A companion for them and someone who helps to run things."  
Doc nods, "Makes sense. So did she tell you which one?"  
Jules shakes her head, "No, but she doesn't need to, I figured it out the other day."  
Doc looks at her pleadingly, eyes wide and begging for sympathy. Jules just rolls her eyes at her friend's silliness.  
"Its the Easter Bunny. She's basically been in love with him since she was a toddler."  
"Oh, so does Jack know?"  
It takes Jules a moment before Doc's question registers with her and then she's bent over laughing so hard she almost falls to the ground.  
"Oh, that's rich."  
At Doc's confused look Jules pulls herself together enough to clarify, "Jack isn't interested in Goose. He's just been messing around trying to get Bunny jealous, he's trying to get them together."  
"Oh." Doc flushes slightly at learning this but says nothing more on the matter for a while. "So you were helping Jack out the other day?"  
"Yep."  
"Could I maybe help out? I know I still like her, but I'd rather see her happy and if that means getting her set up with the giant rabbit, then well that's what I'll do."  
Jules smiles at him and pulls him into a hug. "Great!"  
xxxxxxxxxx  
After that day Jules managed to pull book in on their planning and they met several times with Jack in order to figure out how to get Sophie and Bunny together. As November was coming to an end and Thanksgiving was quickly coming upon them Doc got an idea for how to draw Bunny to Burgess in order to allow him reveal his feelings to Sophie. With their plot set it was only a matter of time before they could implement it.**

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Sorry for it being another short chapter, but I think we have one or two chapters left and the next part I felt needed its own chapter. Next time operation matchmaker will swing into full effect. Please review and vote for if Jules should be Jack's Missus, current standings are 5 in favor and one against.


	9. Chapter 9

**As soon as Thanksgiving had passed Jules, Book and Doc set about setting up their part of the plan.  
"Hey Goose."  
"Oh, hey Jules, what's up?"  
"Well Christmas is only a month away and we've been asked to do something special for the kids. apparently one of the kids that we get regularly has told his mother, a member of the community theatre group, about your stories and she thinks it would be wonderful if they put on a little production."  
"Isn't it a bit short notice to be planning something like this?"  
"Uh, well. In all honesty, she doesn't want it to be a big stage production like you're probably thinking. she was thinking it would be fun for the kids if you were up on stage with a few people dressed as the characters from your stories with you narrating. It would even be a bit interactive with some of the kids coming up to act out parts."  
Sophie seems to think it over a moment before agreeing. Jules makes plans for them to meet after school so she can introduce Sophie to the woman who was going to organize the event.  
When school let out the two friends met up and headed over to the community theatre where Sophie met Mrs. Carter. The two discussed the idea for the interactive storytime and Sophie showed the woman her sketches of the character and the stories she had finished. They picked a couple to prepare for before saying their goodbyes.  
"This is going to be so much fun. Mrs. Carter said that if this works out and the kids like it enough it may be a regular event."  
"I heard, I think that will be pretty cool."  
After that meeting Sophie began heading over to the community theatre to help them with the costumes and to rehearse her stories, though it was mostly the timing. Her friends would tag along and would often mess around by putting on one of the costumes and acting out the character for her as she read the story. And so it was that during one of these rehearsals Sophie's friends saw Jack Frost give them the signal to enact the plan. Doc grinned as he slipped off while Book and Jules kept Sophie occupied. He slipped into the costume for Pitch and made sure he looked as convincing as he possibly could before sneaking around behind Sophie on the stage. With the other two acting as if he is not there and adding to the illusion Doc waited until the doors at the back of the theatre swung open before jumping into action.  
xxxxxxxx  
Bunny was grumbling about the cold as Jack went up to see if there was anyone in the theatre other than Sophie and her friends. He returned a moment later with a nod.  
"All clear."  
"Great, cause it's freezing out here and I can't feel my feet." Bunny hops towards the door to the theatre and hurries inside, sighing at the warmth of being in the considerably warmer lobby of the theatre. Once he was able to feel his feet he sent a glare at the grinning Jack Frost, smug bastard. They then proceeded into the main section of the theatre where the stage was and where they would find Sophie and her friends. Of course what Bunny saw upon opening the door into the theatre nearly gave him a heart attack.  
Pitch, the Boogeyman, was stalking up behind Sophie and looked ready to grab her. It was clear her friends couldn't see the danger, they obviously didn't believe in the threat. Without thinking about anything except the need to protect Sophie, Bunny finds himself bolting across the room and reaching Sophie just as Pitch would have had her. Pulling the girl to him and then pushing her behind him so he is between her and the Boogeyman he finally gets a good look at the other.  
"Bunny?"  
Sophie is peaking around the Easter Bunny to see what the problem is and like Bunny is soon realizing what is going on.  
"What are you doing dressed like that you bloody whacker?"  
Bunny was not happy when he realized that the person he thought was Pitch was actually just one of Sophie's friend's dressed as him. He was not amused, he was embarrassed and a bit pissed off. Grumbling he relaxes from his tensed fighting pose and turned to Sophie to make sure she was alright. When he did though he saw her blushing madly and looking down at her feet as she played with the hem of her shirt.  
"Uh, um, are you alright?"  
She just nods and the two just stare at the floor between them, neither having the courage to make eye contact. Eventually the silence between them is broken.  
"Oh come on. Would you two just kiss or something already. I swear you're both the most stubborn people I know. Ow!"  
Jules had stopped Jack from saying anything else as the two on the stage seemed to be burning in embarrassment. bunny made a strange choking sound in his throat when he realized he had been set up from the moment he agreed to come on this trip to see what Sophie was doing for her storytime play.  
"Frostbite..." His embarrassment was quickly turning to anger at the prankster.  
"Oh come on, don't get mad at me. You two keep dancing around one another and avoiding each other. I had to do something."  
Jack was tightening his grip on his staff and looking ready to run off as Bunny glared at him for the comment, fortunately for him sophie took pity on the winter sprite.  
"Bunny." She places her hand on his arm and turns him around to face her.  
The tall rabbit gulps and looks nervously at the girl looking up at him while nibbling her lower lip. Before she can muster up the courage to say anything else though, Bunny is interrupting her.  
"Will you be my Missus?"  
It was so silent immediately following that question that you could have heard a pin drop. Eventually though sophie breaks out of her shock and into a wide smile that Tooth would have swooned at seeing.  
"Of course."  
A collective sigh is released by the meddling friends. Soon they are congratulating the two and Jules announces that they should all head over to her place to celebrate with pizza. They agree easily.  
xxxxxxxxxxxx  
Once the celebration has died down a bit Bunny pulls Sophie aside to talk to her about their future.  
"I think you should finish school."  
Sophie seems surprised at first, but then smiles.  
"I know. I was thinking I should probably wait until I go to college and then I can go to Australia." She smiles at him conspiratorially. "There I would meet a wonderful young man that sweeps me off my feet, we would elope and run away together. Of course my family would be shocked but they wouldn't worry because they would knew I was in safe hands."  
It took Bunny a moment to realize that she had apparently been putting some thought into how she would stage her disappearance as far as he family was concerned. It caused him to smile softly at her.  
"How long have you been thinking about that plan o' yours missy?"  
"Since I met Mrs. Claus. I figured it would be best to have a plan in case you wanted me as you Missus."  
Bunny's smile softens even more. "I can't imagine not wanting you to be my Missus." Bunny leans down and presses his nose to Sophie's causing her to giggle as his whiskers tickle her face. She returns the gesture and wraps her arms about him, holding him close to her.  
Content in their plan for the future the two stand there hold one another until their friends come out and start whooping and cat-calling. At which point Bunny turns to glare at them and gets a snowball to the face. Before anything else can be said a full on snowball fight has broken out and laughter is filling the air.**

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And done. I hope you all found that ending satisfactory. Also, the final votes are in, 5 of you wanted Jules to be Jack's Missus and only one objected so... there will be one last chapter, an Omake where I will write that out. Enjoy and please leave a review.


	10. Omake

**After the snowball fight had wound down Jack found himself laying in a snowbank beside Jules. Both were panting and Jules herself was flushed pink from the cold and exercise. Both wore broad smiles as they stared up into the sky.  
"You know I never did ask your real name, I know Soph mention that 'Jules' was just a nickname."  
"It's Elizabeth." She turn her head so she is looking over at him and he does the same.  
At that same moment a certain jaded spirit of love and warm fuzzy feelings has stumbled across the two. Cupid was not in a good mood and seeing these two interlopers that had interfered with his work had him steaming in righteous anger. Then he smiles. This was not a good feels sort of smile this was a smile that would have had anyone seeing it inching away from the blonde haired man. Silently he knocks two arrows onto his bow and takes careful aim. At the very moment the two are looking at one another he releases the arrows and they pierce the heart of each, dissolving almost as soon as they strike and leaving no evidence that they were there.  
For the millisecond after the arrows struck Jack was shocked, he had seen the arrows and knew who had targeted them, but then he couldn't care less as he gazed into Jules blue-grey eyes. She was gazing back and the two slowly moved closer to one another until their lips were meeting. It didn't take long after that for the simple kiss to become more and before either could register the hands roaming all over their bodies, they were rolling around like horny teenagers.  
Cupid meanwhile stuck around long enough to make sure the feelings would stick before flying off with a wild cackle one would have more associated with a spirit of Halloween rather than one of love. Cupid though only cared about one thing, revenge was sweet.**

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And now I see I had some foresight in throwing Cupid in this earlier. He was rather helpful wasn't he? Anyway I hope you all have enjoyed this, I certainly have. Thank you for all of the support and reviews.


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